Archive for bookcase
March 30, 2011 at 1:06 am · Filed under bookcase, books, finances, summer time, the dog, thrillers, walks, wildflowers
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It was another lovely yesterday. The dog and I went for a walk in the afternoon and dawdled. We just hung out by bushes and trees and took our time. I noticed all sorts of plants popping out of the ground, some of them with small flowers on them. I don’t know what all of them are, but I’m glad to see them. It makes dawdling more interesting. Suddenly I don’t feel that I’m in a rush.
We went home in a roundabout way and the dog got to explore some seldom visited territory. He climbed into the shrubbery by the edge of the road and I let him. He no doubt thought there were very interesting things in there. I expected him to come out with all sorts of horrible finds, but luckily, he didn’t.
The sun was shining in my face and it felt good. I wasn’t wearing my sunglasses and had to squint. Doubtlessly I’ll get wrinkles by my eyes now. I must remember to wear my sunglasses if I want to preserve my relative youth. Ahum…
It’s supposed to rain tonight and the next day, which is a darn shame. A person gets used to this sunshine and the long bright days since we set the clocks ahead one hour. That’s agreeing with me very well. I feel like I’m finally on a normal schedule again. We should do like the Russians decided to do and always stick to summer time. I wonder to whom I have to address the petition that no doubt everyone will sign. I probably have to address it to the prime minister who I’m not too fond of. I would hate to beg something off him.
Regardless of the fact that the bookcase is becoming pretty full, and that I have a bunch of unread novels on there, I couldn’t resist an offer of bol.com for three English language books for one low price and no shipping charges. I picked out three thrillers that I really wanted and should get them in a few days. In the meantime, I have to finish the one I’m reading, so I can start on the new ones when they get here. One of them is a Henning Mankel and I think I will try that one first. I do like Scandinavian thrillers. They are so stark and sober and I like the fact that they take place in another country foreign to me.
Like I said, the bookcase is getting full, but I can make room on it by removing some older books that aren’t so great in appearance. They are just filling up space. Sooner or later I will have to get another bookcase, but I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. I’ve already picked out the one that I want at Ikea. It is a standard one that they always carry and I think I have a place for it, though I haven’t taken the measurements yet.
I will give a party on the day that I really fill up my bookcase. Maybe I can make it coincide with my birthday. I’ll have to hurry up and order more books. No, realistically speaking, I’m not going to make that. I’ll have to postpone that moment or I’ll break the bank. I do have to consider my budget. Every book will be hard come by.
Have a great day!
Ciao,
Nora
January 12, 2011 at 5:30 am · Filed under bedtime, blogs, bookcase, books, clothes, coffee, daydreaming, early morning, laundry, medication, personal helper, the animals, thoughts
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I am sat here with my usual cup of coffee and I find myself quite contend. I feel that there’s not much that can go wrong now this early in the morning before the day has properly started. I’m still yawning a little bit, but another cup of coffee will take care of that. It’s nice to be up and sit here and enjoy the early hours of the day. All is quiet around me and the animals are asleep.
I feel like minor royalty in her realm, as if I’m the head of a very small state in which only I rule. All my subjects are sound asleep and all is well with the state of affairs. Oh no, I don’t have visions of grandeur. Only the need to have peace and quiet in my life. What better way to achieve that than to be in charge. It’s only a very small kingdom I rule.
My Wednesday personal helper is going to be here this morning and I must take a shower before she gets here. It will be nice to get that out of the way and to be clean and refreshed. I will have to put on some clean clothes and I will have to magically make an outfit appear out of the closet. No doubt I am capable of that. I always manage to come up with something.
In about an hour and a half I will take my medicines. I’ve cut my anti-psychotics down by half and starting this Friday, I will have cut down my anti-depressives by a third. My psychiatrist thinks this is doable. We’re going to keep me at these doses for a while and see how I do on them before we make any more changes. We’re going to cut down the anti-depressives more before we do anything else with the anti-psychotics. I feel good so far and I have a lot more energy. I’m not so sleepy and lethargic during the day.
Since today is Wednesday, I don’t have an awful lot to do. It will be a fairly quiet day, but those are welcome too. It turned out that I did have a load of laundry to do, as I pulled some clothes out of my closet that needed washing. I’m going to change the sheets on my bed and that will make going to bed tonight an extra pleasure, although it always is. That’s one thing I look forward to every night. Going to bed and listening to the radio while I fall asleep.
Maybe today I will get a chance to sit down and read my book, something that I’ve found impossible to do lately. I’ve felt that I’ve been too distracted to give it the proper attention. Since I’ve stopped reading in bed at night, I’ve found it hard to sit down in my armchair during the day and do it. Something is always pulling my attention away from it, if not my own thoughts that meander all over the place, but nowhere important. It’s a very good book filled with interesting details and really requires me to sit down and give it my full attention, which is something I can’t seem to do now, but I’m going to give it a try today.
My bookcase is filled with good books that I still need to read if I ever get around to them. I end up sitting in my chair and daydreaming about nothing in particular at all. None of my thoughts are very deep and heavy and I’m not solving any of the world’s problems. I just let my mind wander and touch down here and there like a butterfly flitting from flower to flower. It’s the most uncomplicated way to spend time. I’m glad I’m relieved of thinking depressing thoughts that weigh down heavily on my shoulders. That’s all behind me now. I’ve passed that stage.
Well, I’m going to read some blogs until it’s time to make my move. The day is young yet. The sun won’t be up for awhile. I’m switching to cold milk. I’ve had enough coffee. I’m very thirsty and it will be most welcome.
Have a nice day!
Ciao,
Nora
December 12, 2010 at 4:22 pm · Filed under bedroom, bookcase, chores, courage, domestic help, energy, laundry, organizing, paperwork, sofa, the cold, Tyke, washing machine, worries
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I’m in the middle of doing chores and really don’t have the time to sit down and write a post, but while the washing machine is churning away, I figured I could ignore the dishes and sit here for a bit. I can see the dishes from where I’m sitting behind the computer and I’m glancing at them as I write. I will not be intimidated by them. There are not that many of them and I’ll have them done in no time. I’m saying this with all the courage I have in me at the moment and that is more than I had earlier in the day when I was more cowardly.
I’ve done some chores already and did them more speedily than I had anticipated. I’m more efficient than I thought I was. Apparently I had put enough thought into it ahead of time that I went to work in an organized fashion and got them done in the shortest amount of time. Either that or I had them blown up in my mind to a size that was completely out of proportion to their actual size. I think the latter must have been the most true. I do worry about things ahead of time too much.
I had one single sock in the dry laundry, but I know where the other one is. Tyke had stolen it and used it as a security blanket. It had floated around the living room for a few days. He had not chewed any holes in it and I finally took it away from him and put it in the next load of laundry. I’ll have to give him an old sock that smells like me. I don’t really know if I have one. He’ll have to wait until I truly have an old sock. Maybe the next time I have a hole in the toe of one, but my socks seem so sturdy. They are industrial strength socks.
I’m slowly reorganizing the bookcase in the bedroom and finding new places for all the things that Tyke shows the least bit of interest in. It means getting rid of things too. A lot of it is paperwork that needs to be better organized and it’s a good reason to do that. I need to make a box with vital documents and have those safe in a cabinet where they are also handy. I used to have them in a file system, but it has fallen apart due to old age. You always have to decide what to keep for posterity and what can just go. It’s also important to stay in the here and now.
Tyke purposely rolls his tennis ball under the sofa and then stands beside it and barks so that I have to get the African walking stick and get the ball out from underneath. He’s a little stinker. I saw him do the same thing with the ball and the CD rack. He’d get it stuck underneath there and couldn’t get it out without my help, but he pushed it underneath there himself on purpose. He really made the effort to. That dog is much smarter than I give him credit for.
Every time I think the washing machine is done, it goes and does something else. European washing machine sure take their time to run through all the cycles and I put it on a short program too. I want to dry the laundry tonight so that I can change my bed again soon. I have a shortage of pillow cases, because I use four at the time and I can’t find the right size unless I go to Ikea. I haven’t been there in a long time and I should talk my sister into going.
I discovered the window in the spare bedroom was open and had been open for god knows how long. It does explain why it was getting so cold in here so quickly. One of the domestic helps must have opened it and I have a suspicion which one it was. I kept feeling a draft by my legs when I sat behind the computer, but I thought it was because of the cat flap. Since I closed it, it is a lot warmer in here and the heater hasn’t gone on all day. It goes to show you how much energy I could have saved. I’m glad I discovered it before it got really cold again tonight. I would have turned up the heater with it open and have been none the wiser.
I think the washing machine is done and I will go hang up the laundry. It’s dark outside and time to turn on the lights. It’s time to be cozy and cuddle the animals.
Have a good evening!
Ciao,
Nora
September 9, 2010 at 12:23 pm · Filed under armchair, bedroom, bookcase, books, chores, coffee, coffee table, laundry, mail, middle of the night, pajamas, sofa, the apartment, the Exfactor, Tyke, work
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I did go back to sleep in the middle of the night when I told you that I was maybe going to do all sorts of jobs and I thought was too wide awake to go back to bed. I slept until 7 o’clock and got dressed immediately. I was a little dopey, but a cup of coffee helped me get over that. Coffee always works and always gets my mind up to the proper speed. What would I do without it?
Promptly, at 8 o’clock, a big truck pulled up outside and I locked Tyke in the spare bedroom and went to open up the front door and the outside door. The first thing that was carried in was the new coffee table, which came in a flat pack and which I would have to assemble myself. Then the delivery men started to carry in the sofa, but soon ran into trouble, because the space by the front door in the hallway turned out to be to narrow to let the long sofa in. I had not realized when I ordered it that it was over sized. Those guys tried every trick, but they could not get it inside, so they had to take it back and told me that I would have to order a shorter sofa.
I did that and it turns out that the sofa I ordered now is nicer than the sofa I ordered first. I think this one escaped my attention, because I was not looking for size, but for a three seater. This time I looked for size and got different choices. It will be here next Wednesday and until that time I will have to do without a sofa, but that is really no problem. There are worse things in life.
Then I opened the flat pack and saw what I had to deal with and the fact that there were about 100 screws that needed to be screwed in and I decided that it was not a job for me. I don’t have an electric screwdriver. I called the Exfactor and he will be over tomorrow with his and put the coffee table together. I’m ever so grateful and until that time, the flat pack has been closed up again. Tyke lies on top of it with his ball and thinks he’s the king of the living room.
I took a break and thought about things and then switched the armchairs around so that the barrel chair, which has comfortable armrests, is by the reading light and I can sit in it when I read my book. That way I don’t have to lug a pillow around every time I sit down to read. I’ve put the extra pillows on my bed with pillow cases on them and they will come in handy when I want to lie down on the sofa, which has low armrests. They should be very good to sleep on.
Then I cleaned up and rearranged the bookcase and made space for more books by getting rid of obsolete things and moving reference books to the bedroom. That went a lot easier and faster than I had anticipated. I still have to move two boxes that are sitting on top of it. I had quite forgotten about them and am running out of space to put things. There’s only so much room in the apartment. The bookcase looks much better now and that shows you what a short amount of hard work can do for you. I wasn’t even out of breath.
I’m still going to do a load of laundry next and change my bed, so going to sleep tonight will be fun, although it really is every night, but I will wear clean pajamas too. That’s something to look forward to. I think you must have these little points of light to aim for in your day every day. The smallest things count. Like having a glass of cold milk and a peanut butter sandwich or getting your mail out of the mailbox and finding a package there that you were expecting. It’s all about anticipation and enjoyment.
I’m now going off to enjoy my chores. Have a nice day.
Ciao,
Nora
September 6, 2010 at 9:07 pm · Filed under altruism, armchair, bedtime, birthday, bookcase, books, comfort, domestic help, downtown, grocery shopping, habits, Ikea, nap, rain, rituals, sisters, smoking, the Exfactor, Tyke
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I took a short nap after dinner and now feel completely refreshed and ready to enjoy the rest of the evening. I can’t go to bed too late, though, because tomorrow morning I have to go downtown with my sister and pick out my birthday present. I already know what I want, because I saw it advertised on TV, and I hope I find it in the right size and color. I’ll tell you about it when I have it.
Tyke is sitting on the dining table looking out the window. He came and asked for approval before he did so and now he’s being very good. The domestic help brought him a stubby, squeaky, rubber ball today and he has had the most fun playing with it. It’s made him happy all afternoon and he takes it with him wherever he goes. I’ve only had to retrieve it from beneath the sofa 3 times. That’s very good. It means he’s keeping good track of it. I would have had to retrieve the tennis ball many more times. We are very grateful to the domestic help.
I slept late this morning and didn’t get dressed until noontime. At least I knew which clothes I was going to wear. I was so very comfortable in my bed and then, of course, I had to leisurely drink my coffee, which will be a thing of the past once I quit smoking. I will not leisurely drink coffee anymore, but just have a cup in a hurry. I will have to change some of my habits and leisurely sitting around will be one of them. I’m sure I will be more active and I will have to find all sorts of things to do to keep myself busy. Maybe I’ll paint the living room and the hallway.
I didn’t take one moment to sit down in my armchair to read today. It is a real ritual that I have to perform, because usually I don’t sit there. I have to get my book and my reading glasses and my glass of milk. Then I have to get my cigarettes and lighter and ashtray and the pillow to lean against. I really have to settle in and I didn’t give myself the chance to do that today. I don’t know how I did pass the time of day, but of course I was asleep for a large part of it.
At least the reading ritual will be simplified a lot once I’ve quit smoking. I won’t have to bother with half of it once I do. I do want to put the emphasis on that for myself. My life is going to be a lot simpler when I’ve quit smoking because now I have to always calculate the chance to have a cigarette into everything I do and there are so many times when having a cigarette is not such an easy thing to do. The world is not smoker’s friendly anymore and I’m certainly not going to allow anyone to smoke inside my apartment once I’ve quit smoking. There is no place for smokers. They pollute other peoples’ air and it makes their world very small if they don’t want to and they can’t consciously. I’m glad I don’t live in the 70’s anymore when everybody smoked and it was normal to smoke inside wherever you were and it would have been frowned upon to ask someone to go outside and do it. I also want to keep discussing my plan to quit so that it will be a natural thing when I actually do.
I got the new Ikea catalog in the mail today and I’m going to sit down when I have a chance and look through it thoroughly. I can’t wait to see what’s in it. I know there is a nice smallish sized bookcase in it, because I’ve already looked that up on the website and it’s not too expensive. I may get that once my bookcase is full, which it almost is. I’m expecting 9 books from Bookmooch in the mail and those will take up a bit of space. The bookcase I saw is quite nice and I know just where to place it. I do have room for it. I have some of my older books in my bedroom on the bookshelf there, but I was looking at them today and some of them are nice enough to have in the living room. It’s just for lack of space that they are in the bedroom. I want to have all my fiction in one place and all the reference books in another, so I’m going to make some changes as soon as I have the chance.
It’s supposed to start raining tonight and rain tomorrow too. I actually don’t hope so if I’m going out in the morning. The Exfactor is also supposed to come over and a friend of mine is coming over in the afternoon. The Exfactor is going to do the groceries and I need him to get some pastries to have with the coffee. Rain is not welcome tomorrow and hopefully there will only be occasional showers. I usually like rain, so it’s very contradictory of me to not want any now, but I usually don’t have to go out in it. See how selfish it is of me to change my mind like that. People for the most part are very egocentric. There’s always a core of self interest in everything we choose or wish for. Most of us aren’t nearly as altruistic as we’d like to believe we are.
It’s time for me to go to bed, even though I’m not that tired yet and I could do ten other things instead. The problem is that I need to get up on time in the morning and I do want to get enough sleep. I sure hope that I don’t make the mistake of getting up in the middle of the night. I have to stay in bed and sleep and will have to figure out a way to. I will have to show some self discipline, if I have any, that is. Sure I do. I’m quitting smoking, aren’t I? You need backbone for that.
Sleep tight, goodnight,
Ciao,
Nora
September 3, 2010 at 3:09 am · Filed under blog post, bookcase, Bookmooch, books, boots, clothes, domestic help, hair, Ikea, middle of the night, obsession, personal helper, shower, surprise, the Exfactor, walks, wasting time
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I just had a cup of tea and now I’m having a tall glass of milk. I figured that I didn’t need to be drinking coffee at this time of night. I don’t need it to function anyway, I do okay without it. Although come to think of it, I may be a little dull without it. I may make a little coffee yet and see if that will enliven me a bit. I do depend on artificial stimulation to get my brain to perform at its best. It’s no good sitting here half awake when I could be fully awake. Especially not if I’m going to write a blog post.
Yesterday I got a nice surprise in the mail. It was a gift certificate from my daughter to spend at bol.com. I was able to get five books that I really wanted and if I’m lucky they will be here for my birthday. It was the nicest thing I’ve gotten in a long while and it was the perfect gift. I have such a long wish list at bol.com that it wasn’t difficult to pick out the books that I wanted. I had a great time choosing them and getting the most for my money. What a blast that was. I do seriously have to make room on my bookcase now and remove some books that are unimportant and move those to the bedroom. I don’t need to tell you that books are my greatest treasures. I value them as much as I value my clothes, if not more. More, I guess.
Yesterday was a strange day other than that. I completely wasted it doing a whole bunch of unnecessary things that I thought were important at the time I was doing them. They all involved sitting behind the computer and they all took up a lot of my time, but looking back on them now, I think none of them were worth it. I kept getting involved in little projects that I thought were interesting and necessary, but that didn’t amount to a hill of beans and that may as well have been left undone.
Sometimes I get caught up in things that suddenly grab my attention and I think it is very important that I do them immediately at the cost of everything else. It’s not until after the fact, when the spell has been broken, that I see it has been completely useless and that I may as well have spent my time doing something completely different. I came to my senses early in the evening and took Tyke for a walk in the fresh air to get those obsessive behaviors out of my head. I’m not planning on having a day like that today. I have to grab myself by the neck and pull myself back to reality where I belong.
My personal helper is going to be here today and so is my domestic help. I have to do a few chores beforehand and I think that the Exfactor is also going to come by. He can go to the store for me and get the few things I forgot about the other day. He had offered to do so when I was trying to remember everything for my shopping list and couldn’t think of. I will have a full house, but the more the merrier, right? As long as everybody co-operates and does what they are supposed to do, I’m happy.
I can’t believe it’s Friday again. It seems it was only Friday just a few days ago, but I’m not complaining. The week just went by awfully fast. I’m planning on reading a lot this weekend. I want to finish the novel I’m reading now and start a new one and I have so many to choose from. When I look on my bookcase I see so many possibilities. I forget what is up there and I really have to have a good look at all the shelves so I don’t miss anything. Everywhere there are books that I haven’t read. It’s like going on a treasure hunt and being very successful.
I have to choose new clothes to wear today and I want to wear something very different than I have been wearing. I have to have a good look in my closet and pick out something fun that I haven’t worn for a while. I keep wearing the same sets of clothes, because I think they look good and I’m comfortable in them, but that’s silly, of course. I should get out some of the other things. I do have enough to choose from. I must also wear my new boots, which I have been saving for the right moment. Well, today is as good a day as ever.
I told you the coffee would perk me up and it has. I was sitting here as dull as a wallflower and now I am lively and full of myself. It only took a cup and a half and I’m a human being again. That cup of tea just didn’t do it for me. Who was I fooling? There’s a difference between night and day.
I have to go to the post office today and mail some books for Bookmooch. I keep getting books in the mail myself and there are quite a few underway. That’s another reason to make room on the bookcase. I’ve already looked at it to see what I can move to the bookshelf in the bedroom and it will be a painless thing. I have large binders of administration in one cubbyhole that have no business being there. They look quite unattractive and they should go. I will gladly move them out of there. I will have to buy a smaller bookcase soon, though, and find a place to put it. I will have to look in Ikea and see what they have on offer. My sister has one like I have in a smaller version and it is quite attractive and may just do the trick. I will go to their website and have a look.
I have to take a shower and wash my hair with the blond shampoo. I haven’t used it the last few times and now my hair doesn’t look quite as nice. The blond shampoo brings out the highlights. If you’re a natural blond, I can recommend using it. I have gray hairs sprinkled throughout , but it just looks like I had my hair lightened a bit.
I will go in search of clothes to wear. I will put an outfit together that will be just right. Something cheerful and perky to match my mood. To match my mood on coffee. I do have some idea of what it’s going to be . I think I even know which necklace I’m going to wear, but maybe it’s going to be a scarf. It depends on how cold it is when I go out to walk Tyke. It is 10C now, so a bit on the cold side. I can take my time because it isn’t even light outside yet. That means I can pamper myself after my shower with body lotion and facial cream and really fix my hair well. I won’t be in a rush like I usually am.
Have a terrific day, everyone. It’s been a pleasure to wile away the very early morning hours with you while you were asleep.
Ciao,
Nora
June 22, 2010 at 12:42 pm · Filed under bookcase, books, cafés, dogs, dreams, friends, reality, sleep, SPN, stubbornness, terrace, the Exfactor, Tyke, weather
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I slept all night last night, just like an ordinary person, I swear to God. It was an amazing experience after not having done so for about a week. I went to bed at a decent time and woke up at a decent time after having had a few significant dreams that I was rather pleased with. Dreams that normally have lots of frustration in them, but that now had satisfying endings. They point me emotionally in a whole new direction and remind me of some of my rights and desires and my own power as a human being. It is possible to swim and not drown in life’s complications. It may even turn out to be a warm tropical sea in which you will float. I don’t mean to speak in mysteries, but they are realities to me.
I woke up with some time to spare before I had to go to my SPN. I drank coffee and answered my emails. Then I got dressed and walked Tyke. We met a woman with two French bulldogs and much sniffing and snorting went on before all the dogs were happy. The bulldogs snorted, of course, with their flattened noses. Tyke likes these encounters very much and is as happy as a toddler in the zoo. He just can’t get enough of it and I literally have to pull him away with all my might. He longingly looks back at his departing friends and really wants to follow them home.
My SPN pointed out to me, that my grievances may actually be real and that I should not just dismiss them as being a product of the absence of enough medication in my system, although she did say that this possibly aggravates it. We looked at one situation in particular and found that it had a real basis and that it was not something I imagined to be true. I do have a real grievance, it is based on something and I have every right to be upset about it and to want to correct it. It’s just how I go about it that makes the difference. That’s the important part. I feel that I have to be very careful about that and not burn any bridges behind me and I think I could easily have done that yesterday, because my tone would have been very accusatory and nasty. I can’t have that. I do want to stay rational and calm. It’s the best way to achieve what I want.
The Exfactor was supposed to be here and I just called him to find out where he was and he told me he’s not going to be here until tomorrow morning. I’m slightly p*ssed off about this, because I would have waited in vain and he would not have called me. Besides, I think it’s rude to say you’re going to be here and then decide not to show up. I did count on it and have been waiting since 11 am when I rushed home from my appointment. I think he does insist on leeway a little too much.
I’ve walked Tyke again and he was his same predictable stubborn self who insisted on being ornery in all the same places. I can pinpoint ahead of time where that is going to be and I’m waiting for him to get over it. Sooner or later he must catch on to the fact that I’m not going to give in to him and that we are not going in that direction and that we are going to move on and that we aren’t going to walk around those trees. He did finally get his way and ate the bread that the ducks didn’t eat and he acted like it was something incredibly special. Like I had starved him for days. He’s got a very tough life here.
The day has been mostly sunny, although there are clouds in the sky and it isn’t all that warm. We are just pretending it’s warm and everybody is out with bare arms and bare legs, even the mailman. Let it not be said that we aren’t optimists. It would be nice to sit out on a cafe terrace now and have a cold beer, though a glass of white wine would do nicely too. You do need someone to sit with, though, and the only person I can think of is my friend Yvonne. Everybody else is unavailable. My sister is in Italy and my friend Lucienne is in Spain. Besides, it’s too late in the afternoon to make plans. I should have thought of it earlier. Oh no, I thought the Exfactor was coming.
At least I haven’t felt the need for a nap and that is a bonus point. It will probably mean that I will sleep well tonight. I will read my thriller this afternoon. I tried to read it in bed last night, but fell asleep with it quickly. I had enough sense to put it under my pillow and turn off the light, although Tyke hasn’t been in the least bit destructive anymore. I think those days are behind him, knock on wood. He leaves my books alone and the books on the bookcase are safe too. So are my shoes and my cigarettes and lighter. He’s just about done being a “terrible toddler.”
I hope you’re all having a good day. I hope your weather is nice. It’s slowly warming up in the living room now that the sun is shining through the windows. I don’t have a tan yet, but I may try to get one.
Ciao,
Nora
January 16, 2010 at 9:00 pm · Filed under authors, bedroom, bookcase, books, coffee, Jesker, pajamas, rain, snow, walks, wish list
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I just walked the dog and it was raining. It melted a lot of the snow, but many places were still very icy, so you can imagine how it was to walk there. It was like taking your life in your own hands. I ended up walking in the middle of the street, because it was the least slippery there, but the dog couldn’t figure out why we were walking there. We got very wet. My boots are soaked and so was the dog, but he loves to get rubbed dry with a towel. He comes back for more and stands there patiently while I get him as dry as possible.
I just finished reading ‘Superior Women’ by Alice Adams and now I have to choose a new book. I’m completely undecided yet and will just walk to the bookcase and let my instincts guide me. As a matter of fact, I’ll go do that right now.
I’ve picked ‘Prodigal Summer’ by Barbara Kingsolver and now I can’t wait to get started on it. I think it’s something completely different than Alice Adams. I tell you, a good book can save your life. I would give up a lot of things before I gave up books, especially now that I’m feeling so very low and reading seems to be one activity that I can still do easily. Well, it’s almost the only thing I still do.
Three books arrived in the mail today, two of which I ordered at Bol.com. They are ‘My Sister’s Keeper’ by Jodi Picoult and ‘The Almost Moon’ by Alice Sebold. The other book that came is ‘Ellen Foster’ by Kaye Gibbons. I also have ‘A Virtuous Woman’ by her. I haven’t read that one yet either. I get very excited when I have an unread book in my hands and when I look at all the unread books on my bookcase. I also feel very good about putting a finished book back on the bookcase, knowing that one day I will maybe read it again, but also knowing it is there and looking at it with fondness because of the good memories.
I feel very proprietary about my books. That was one of the hard parts about Bookmooch, giving up your own books to get other ones, yet you got three books for every two that you gave away, so there was a reward system and I did end up with a lot of books. But there was a big price to pay in the form of postage. Now I get to keep every book I own and I feel good about that and I will fill my bookshelves in the living room and in the bedroom. The books that I will get rid off are the beat up and discolored ones, but I think I already mentioned that.
There’s a book called ‘Ecotopia’ by Ernest Callenbach and I have a very old and beat up edition, but I hate to get rid of it because it’s such a good book. I want to try and get a new edition to replace this one and read it again, or have other people read it, because the idea behind the book is so novel. Northern California and Oregon and Washington declare independence from the USA and become isolated and mysterious. Wonderful things happen there and finally a visitor is allowed who makes a report about it to the President. It’s a real eye opener and completely up my alley.
I just went to Bol.com and saw that it is still in print and I put it on my list of books I want to get. The ever growing list of books to which there is no end and which will always keep growing no matter how many books I get. It’s possible that I care about books even more than I care about clothes, at least at the moment I do. That may be because I have enough clothes to wear, although you could argue that I have enough books to read also, but I can’t get enough of them.
I had a library card when I was a kid and my kids had one also. When they were growing up, we were lucky, because the library was just at the end of our street. We went there often and came back with arms full of books. My son ended up reading a lot of fantasy books, but my daughter read everything she could lay her hands on. For a long time I was indiscriminate in my taste and read whatever was on the New York Times bestseller list. Tom Clancy and John le Carré and John Irving. When I came to the Netherlands I decided to focus on female authors and I’ve been doing that almost exclusively ever since, except for a long period when I was not doing well and couldn’t read at all. That was a miserable time in my life. There’s nothing worse than not being able to read.
I still like John Irving, although some of his books are to thick and too laborious, but I loved ‘The World According To Garb’ and ‘The Hotel New Hampshire’ and ‘A Prayer for Owen Meany,’ which I reread not too long ago. I also want to reread ‘The Hotel New Hampshire.’ ‘A Widow For A Year’ was good also. Oh, and of course, ‘The Cider House Rules.’ He’s a quite talented man.
I read Isac Asimov for a while and Stephen King, but then I decided I didn’t want to scare myself half to death anymore and science fiction lost my interest too, because as far as I’m concerned I’m living in it. I read all of the ‘Dune’ books. I was fascinated with them for a while, especially the first one. It spoiled it when they made a movie out of it. When I was younger, a teenager, I read Ray Bradbury, but it was very pessimistic. Science fiction was very pessimistic back then. And of course I read Arthur Clarke and I love that movie, ‘2010, A Space Odyssey.’ Funny that we should be living in that year now.
I’m sticking to my female writers now, although I make an exception now and then and include a male writer. I have some books by two male authors I have yet to read, David Guterson and Michael Cunningham. I haven’t tackled them yet, I’m waiting for the right moment. I suspect David Guterson of being too soft and Michael Cunningham of being too intellectual, but I may be completely wrong. I need a little bit of extra courage to get started on them. I don’t have that much capacity right now.
It’s time for me to get my pajamas on and to get something to eat. I haven’t had dinner yet, but just a glass of juice. I’ve had two cups of coffee that helped me get out of a terrible dip that I was in. I probably got that way because I didn’t have my quota of caffeine for the day. I hadn’t had a cup of coffee since early this morning and that is too long to go without for me. I was going through withdrawal. I’ll also take my medicines and get ready for bed. I have a new book to read and I am looking forward to that. There are clean sheets on the bed too, so that’s nice.
I hope you’re all having a wonderful Saturday and that all your books are enjoyable. Suggestions are always welcome.
Ciao,
Irene
January 8, 2010 at 7:23 am · Filed under agoraphobia, bathrobe, bookcase, Bookmooch, card swap, diary, early morning, late night, sleep, snow, the cold, Toby
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I’m sitting here with my bathrobe and my slippers on being cold and it isn’t really cold in here at all, it is just the suggestion of cold, because it is so cold and snowy outside. It’s -6C and snowing and I just let Jesker out back for a piddle and it was freezing! Well, of course, it’s -6C.
I haven’t had enough sleep yet and shortly I will go back to bed, but I had to get up for a while and have some coffee and my cigarettes and sit here very cozily behind the computer, as is my habit in the morning. I went to bed late last night, because I wasn’t paying attention to what time it was and it got away from me and before I knew it, it was late and past my bedtime. I like to be in bed by 10 o’clock at the latest, but it was well after 11 before I got under the covers last night. Then I woke up at 4:30 this morning and thought I was done sleeping. Well, I’m not, obviously, but I am going to take my medicines and have some breakfast first and then get back under the duvet. I’m looking forward to that already.
I got my card swap package all ready to go. I’ve put together quite a package of cards and papers, both old and new. I have a whole collection of old postcards that I could chose from and I picked out the prettiest ones. I also put in new cards and pretty papers to use for collages. This is the first time I have participated in a swap, so it is a whole new terrain for me and I have to figure out how to best do it. I’ll see when I get my package how it’s best done. I’m very curious to see what will be in it.
I think today I will get the photo agendas. I’m kind of counting on it. If I get them on time, I may be able to walk to the post office, if not, I will have to wait until next week. I have found out that walking somewhere is easier than riding my bike. I feel less vulnerable. I suppose that I feel like less of a target. There was a time when I used to walk into downtown several times a week. Maybe I will be able to do that again. I would take the bus, but it’s too expensive. I could take the bus part of the way there and then walk the rest of the way. I’ll see. Walking would be good for me.
I’ve gotten three mooched books in the mail in the past two days and have to find room for them on the bookcase. They are so nice looking and come from very caring owners. The kind that don’t break the spine of a book. Toby has gotten in the habit of sleeping in the bottom cubicle of the bookcase behind a row of books. I keep empty envelopes there and he likes to sleep on top of them with the result that he knocks the books over. I will have to pack them in so tightly that he won’t be able to do that anymore. Ha, there’s a method to my madness. I like to pack the books in tightly, so they will stay in place, right on the edge and I won’t have to dust there. Believe me, I always have a lot of dust and less than enough interest in dusting. Sometimes I get very industrious and move all the books and clean the whole bookcase, but that only happens a few times a year.
Well, now I have to take my medicines and eat breakfast and go back to bed for a few more hours sleep. I feel in my bones that I need to do that. I will be full of happiness when I wake up again.
Have a good morning.
Ciao,
Nora
December 25, 2009 at 4:46 pm · Filed under bookcase, books, cats, childhood, chores, Christmas, coffee, food, gastric band, holidays, Jesker, Joost, memories, nap, persomality, relationships, sisters, weather
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In the Netherlands we celebrate two Christmas days on the 25th and the 26th, so today is the first Christmas day. We don’t as a rule exchange presents, but do start off the day eating good things with our cups of coffee and I just had a double chocolate chocolaty cake with peach filling at my sister’s with my café latte. It was almost like eating pure chocolate, it was so good, and I could have had all I wanted, but unfortunately one piece was all I could handle and it was on the small side too. My sister would have liked to invite me for dinner as well, but since I can’t eat anything she’s going to serve, that’s an exercise in futility and frustration, so we don’t even consider that. It’s very disappointing when you can never have dinner at someone else’s house, but that’s the price I pay for the gastric band.
We reminisced and talked about our childhood and about our mutual marriages and about our children and about what we have in common and how we function as human beings. We come from the same nest and have the same kind of oddities and the same kind of unique attitudes. We are more similar than we are different and that became apparent today as we shared some of our deeper thoughts about ourselves and how we deal with relationships and problems we run into as a whole. We are not so far removed from the core as we think we are. Our childhood very much influenced who we turned out as people and left a big impression on our personalities and we struggle with it regularly. Why this subject came about today of all days is a mystery, but sometimes we find ourselves in these conversations.
Last night, after I finished writing my post, I made lists of all the books I have mooched and that didn’t take all that long. Then I arranged the rest of the books by color and I was done with everything within an hour. I need some bookends, because not all the cubicles are filled up, but I don’t know if I have any of those. The Exfactor may have some that he may let me have. I’ll have to ask him. I need some very simple metal ones, the kind they use in the library. I have one or two of them, but I need about three more. I should have grabbed what I could when I had the chance. I was not greedy enough.
Anyway, the bookcase looks great and I have two cubicles that can be filled with more mooched books. Some cubicles are tightly packed and not a pin can be pushed in between. That’s what happens when you try to get all the same colors together.
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I’ve just slept two hours on the sofa. I was falling asleep behind the computer, practically nodding off. I think I need a cup of coffee and a strong one too. Tsk, tsk, nodding off while I’m writing a post, it’s terrible. I hope I’m not that sleep inducing when you read it.
I’ve made myself a cup of strong coffee and now I can join the living again. The first thing I had to do was feed the dog, who then refused to eat because I was not right there beside him while he ate. So I stayed by him while he ate what was in his bowl. Silly dog. The cats weren’t pleased, because that didn’t leave anything for them to eat, beside their own kibbles. It’s hard to please everybody and I don’t even start trying.
So, I’ve wasted First Christmas Day doing absolutely nothing noteworthy, which is as it should be. Tomorrow is another day and I will finish my chores then, although officially it’s a holiday. I don’t care, though. You can have too many holidays in a row too and I need to vacuum my bedroom. There are dog hairs there that need removing and the bathroom floor needs to be mopped. I’m a great one for doing chores, aren’t I? I talk about them more than I spend time doing them.
Does your dog scratch the rug too in order to make a good place to lie down? My dog is always doing that, as if he digging himself a hollow to lie down in. Apparently he thinks it works, because he keeps doing it.
I have to go walk him now and thank goodness it has stopped raining, because it was doing that nonstop too earlier. It’s a balmy 4C outside. Nowadays you’re thankful for any degrees above zero Celsius. All the rain has made the last of the slippery snow disappear, so that’s good. No chance of breaking your neck anymore. Watch, these were my famous last words as I found the last patch of icy snow.
I hope you’re all having a good time celebrating this holiday. Amazingly enough, it doesn’t bother me that I’m spending most of it on my own. It is fine, as I have the animals and I did see my sister and I will see Joost on Sunday. But it really isn’t a bad time to spend by myself and I can always watch the horrible Christmas shows on television.
Ciao,
Nora
Another Splendid Day 